Once Upon A Pedestal: spotty cake

Summertime. Hot days, cooler evenings. Mostly. And lots of reasons to cool off with a frosty treat!

polka-dot-suprise-inside-cake-rainbow-ice-cream-free-tutorial-deborah-stauch

This Hidden Polka Dots Ice Cream Cake was made for a segment aired today on one of our local tv stations.

polka-dot-suprise-inside-cake-ice-cream-free-tutorial-KUTV2_deborah-stauch

"Fresh Living" by Channel KUTV 2 features special interest stories from around Utah in this program. I was thrilled to be contacted by them a few weeks ago but was both nervous and excited the closer it came to taping. Things on the homefront are hopping so it's been a little more challenging here but who doesn't love a little upheaval now and again to keep things exciting? You can see how it went here.

polka-dot-suprise-inside-cake-rainbow-ice-cream-free-tutorial-deborah-stauch-KUTV2

Our house is a bit of a wreck while the entire exterior and decks are sandblasted and readied for staining and sealing. The part they forgot to mention was that more than a little of the glass and sawdust would be coming right on through the walls to make the inside an untidy mess. One day last week my keyboard was even covered with a layer of stuff that should be floating around outside. Yuk! The one week estimate for that stage of the project has long since passed and there is still about a fourth of the work left before we move on to the fun part, powerwashing. Perhaps it will wash some of the dust away as it inevitibly finds it's way inside these log walls.

I've all but given up on taping a seperate baking demo (for a different occasion) in my kitchen over the past couple of weeks. After a multitude of attempts, I learned the following: Men in hazmat type gear strolling by the windows every so often doesn't pair well with a baking demo. Better suited for a great reality show. So that taping is now waiting for a camera crew and the local kitchen store or for the promised settling of the dust around here. And did I mention the noise? Fun and funner. I know it's gonna be beautiful when it's done. With lots more time, dust and patience.

So meanwhile, back at the ranch . . . I've been baking polka dots and tucking them in delicious creamy ice cream in preparation for the "Fresh Living" segment. Here they are peeking out from their hiding places before I unmolded and frosted them.

You can watch both me and my fever blister show how to make this cake in 5 minutes or less. Yeah. Fever blister in the middle of the night and right on my lower lip. Is the pouty or puffy look "in" these days? Guess the stress of house demolition has finally exposed itself. Great timing, eh?

How's your summer going? Hope it's a fun one!

Deborah

Here are the tutorials for both the ice cream cake and a kid friendly quick and easy mini polka dot cake:

Hidden Polka Dots Ice Cream Cake

EQUIPMENT

§ 5 Ziploc quart bags for tinting batter
§ Cake pop pan (18 cavities 1.75” each or similar)
§ Storage tub (8.5” size from Family Dollar set or plastic wrap lined pan, empty ice cream tub, etc
§ 9” Tuff board cake round
§ Large spoon or rubber spatula
§ Scissors
§ Long, sharp serrated knife
§ Small offset spatula

INGREDIENTS

§ 1 white cake mix
§ 3 whole eggs
§ 1/3 cup vegetable oil
§ 1 1/4 cups milk
§ 1 T clear imitation vanilla
§ 1 small box instant vanilla or white chocolate or cheesecake pudding
§ Non-stick baking spray with flour
§ AmeriColor soft gel pastes in Orange 113, Egg Yellow 106, Electric Pink 164, Electric Green 162, & Royal Blue 102
§ 1 gallon vanilla ice cream (with some leftover) or homemade
§ Optional: “All White Buttercream” (recipe follows), pre made magic shell ice cream topping or homemade
§ Candy Melts in Orange, Yellow, Pink, Vibrant Green & Blue or optional toppings like M&Ms, Chewy Skittles, Chewy Sprees, Trix cereal or similar, sprinkles or gumballs (Be sure to add at serving time or colors will run on coated candies.)

DIRECTIONS:

CAKE BALLS

§ Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare cake ball pan by spraying the outside of the vents and cavities with baking spray.
§ Prepare 1 white cake mix by stirring 1 small box of instant vanilla or white chocolate pudding mix into dry mix. Add eggs or whites, vanilla, vegetable oil and milk to dry mixture and stir with whisk until well combined.
§ Divide the batter into 5 quart-sized Ziploc bags, about 3/4 c or slightly more per bag. Or you can weigh out the batter at about 7 oz. per color. Tint each bag using about 8 drops orange, 4 drops egg yellow, 3 drops pink, 3-4 drops electric green & 3 drops royal blue gel paste to resemble the Candy Melt colors. Squish the batter around in the sealed bags until colors are evenly distributed.
§ Snip a small corner from each bag and pipe out the tinted batters into the cake ball pan cavities, filling just to rim as shown.
§ The batter makes 8 of each color or 40 total (if using the 18 cavity 1.75” pan) so you’ll need to bake them in batches if you don’t own more than one cake pop pan. Yields for other cake pop pan sizes will vary.
§ Bake at 350F for 15 minutes or until the cake balls are just done and springy to the touch but not browned. When cooled, trim the tops and edges to remove the ridges using sharp craft scissors.
§ Place the balls in single layer on a small baking sheet and freeze until firm. If storing, place the frozen balls in a gallon Ziploc freezer bag and store until needed or continue with assembly if desired.
§ Remove ice cream from freezer to soften when ready for assembly. Ice cream can be quick thawed by placing in microwave in 45-second intervals at 30% power. Be sure the container is microwave safe and leak proof.

ASSEMBLY

§ Line pan with plastic wrap if not using plastic tub or container.
§ Stir the softened ice cream until it is smooth and creamy. Ice cream should be similar to soft serve or frosting so it’s soft enough to spread or even close to being runny so that it will fill all the nooks and crannies.
§ Place about 2 cups of the softened ice cream or enough to cover the bottom of the prepared plastic container or lined pan and set the cake balls on top. Try to make sure that the same colors aren’t next to each other.
§ Pour the softened ice cream evenly around and on top of the cake balls to fill in any gaps.
§ Add another layer of cake balls and follow up with more ice cream. Smooth the top when finished so that no colors are showing through. Place the lid on and place cake in freezer.
§ Freeze the assembled cake for at least 2-3 hours, preferably overnight.

DECORATING & SERVING

§ Remove cake from the freezer at least 15 minutes prior to decorating for ease of unmolding.
§ Invert the cake onto a flat plate or Tuff board cake round. Frost or decorate as desired and return to freezer until serving.
§ Recommended: place frozen cake in 40-degree (standard for frig temps) refrigerator 30 minutes prior to serving time. Thawing times can very depending on type of ice cream used, other ingredients in your cake and freezer temperature.
§ Alternatively: remove from the freezer about 10 minutes prior to serving and transfer to display plate or cake pedestal if desired.
§ Slice with a sharp knife dipped in hot water.

_______________________________________________________________

All White “Buttercream”

Adapted from Wilton
Makes about 3 cups of frosting

Ingredients:
•   1 cup solid vegetable shortening
•   2 T clear vanilla extract
•   4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (approximately 1 lb.)

Instructions:
In large bowl, cream shortening with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. Beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.
For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.
For thin (spreading) consistency icing, add up to 4 tablespoons light corn syrup, water or milk.

_______________________________________________________________

Hidden Polka Dot

MINI Ice Cream & Cereal Cakes

EQUIPMENT

§ 10 count package of round mini food safe containers ($1 at Dollar Tree)
§ Small spoons & mixing bowls
§ Small offset spatula for unmolding

INGREDIENTS

§ Trix cereal or similar
§ Vanilla ice cream
§ Optional: pre made magic shell ice cream topping or DIY
§ Optional toppings like mini M&Ms, sprinkles or jimmies

DIRECTIONS:

Making the mini cakes

§ Fill mini containers with cereal in advance or let the kiddos sort the colors and count the polka dots as they fill them for you. Make sure you can still put the lids back on without crushing the cereal.
§ Remove ice cream from freezer and allow to thaw until mostly melted. Or quick thaw ice cream by placing in microwave in 45-second intervals at 30% power. Stir the softened ice cream until it is smooth and creamy. Ice cream should be similar to soft serve or frosting so it’s soft enough to spread or even close to being runny so that it will fill all the nooks and crannies.
§ Working one container at a time, dump each mini container of cereal into a small bowl. Add 3-4 small spoons of melted ice cream and stir to coat.
§ Add 2 small spoons of melted ice cream to the mini container and scoop the coated mixture back inside. Top with more ice cream until container is full.
§ Place lids on containers and freeze for 1-2 hours or preferably overnight.

Decorating & Serving

§ Remove mini cakes from the freezer at least 15 minutes prior to decorating for ease of unmolding. Invert the cakes onto a small flat plate.
§ Top with Magic Shell or DIY coating and decorate as desired with sprinkles, jimmies or mini M&Ms. Decorated cakes should be served immediately to prevent candy colors from running.
Serve with disposable mini party forks and spoons in coordinating colors if desired.

UPDATE:

Find the tutorial on how to make an Ice Cream Cake with surprise inside polka dots as seen on KUTV Channel 2 here.

rainbow-polka-dot-suprise-inside-cake-spotty-free-tutorial-deborah-stauch

Will putting polka dots inside a cake work? How does one do that? I conducted a little experiment to find out.

Perhaps you've seen these in the store lately and walked right by them. Like I did. Countless times.

I kept asking myself, "Why in the world would I possibly need that when I can roll a perfectly round cake ball with my own two hands?" And then one night I had this great idea for an experiment. (I always call them great ideas until they fail miserably.) How about using them to put polka dots inside a cake? Rather large polka dots. But polka dots all the same.

After researching cake ball pans a bit, I settled on this brand. Mostly because makes 18 balls at once and my coupons at Bed Bath and Beyond were begging to be used. With tax and coupon, final cost was just over $16.

I started with a white cake mix and made some of the adjustments recommended in the instruction guide that came with the bake pop pan. After dividing the batter in half, I further divided half of the batter evenly between 6 bowls for tinting. The colors I used were AmeriColor soft gel pastes in 113 orange, 107 lemon yellow, 164 electric pink, 162 electric green, 103 sky blue, and a mix of 130 regal purple/165 electric purple. I used about 1/2 t. of each so that the colors would remain vivid after baking.

You can see the bright colors in the vents peeking through after the clamps were put on. The instruction guide suggests baking at 350F for 25-30 minutes but that sounded WAY too long. My goal was to slightly under bake them so that they wouldn't dry out too much during the second bake time. They were done at 13 minutes in my oven.

The instruction guide also suggests spraying some non-stick baking spray with flour on the outside of the vents. I failed to take their advice. I was sure that only filling them to the rim wouldn't cause eruptions. But I was WRONG. Mini volcanoes!

One of the happiest surprises of the day was that the volcanoes were more like little caps that popped off almost by themselves leaving the insides intact.

The mess on the outside was minimal after removing the tops with no damage to the balls.

The pans are non-stick but do require a baking spray with flour to help the balls bake evenly. Clean up was fairly easy.

After some quality control and taste testing of the volcanoes, the experiment resumed.

I also ended up trimming the tiniest bit off the tops to make them rounder.
We'll see if that mattered later on.

The scraps.

After adding just enough batter to cover the bottom of my prepared pans, the cake balls were placed inside. My original plan was to freeze the balls before this step but I skipped it so they were room temp when they went in the pans.

The remaining batter was scooped over each ball to cover. And into the oven they went. Looking rather more like dinner rolls than cake. I didn't tap the pans or even the batter out for fear of uncovering the balls.

I ended up using 2 white cake mixes for 3 six-inch rounds. Long story. After trying to capture the steps on the camera, the half batch of batter that I'd hoped to use to cover the balls was getting weird. It had just set out too long. I baked it up in a small oval pan as a decoy for my husband to keep him away from the real project. Never a task for the faint of heart.

For the cake balls, I used the cake mix and pudding along with the substitution of milk for the water per the instruction guide. I did not decrease the liquid as suggested or increase the eggs but went instead with the amounts on the cake mix box.

Since I'd used whole eggs for the cake balls, the remaining half batch of batter had a yellow tinge. And there wasn't enough of it to cover the balls. Yet another reason to use a second cake mix.

The second mix was mixed using the egg white method and ingredients listed on the box except for about a teaspoon of almond extract. Force of habit. So I had a nice white batter to contrast with the bright colors.

The filled six-inch rounds baked about 30 to 35 minutes or until they pulled from the sides of the pan and sprang back when touched lightly. I didn't use the toothpick method for fear of stabbing a colored ball or hopefully soon-to-be-polka-dot since the balls were already cooked and not a true gauge of doneness.

Waiting for them to cool and frost was like waiting for my water to break with my first born. Okay. Maybe not quite that dramatic. But the anticipation was palpable in my kitchen. I know, I know. Get a life.

You can see some of the color coming through in spots. Never wanted to take a knife to a cake more badly in my life. But I waited.

Off to the freezer to chill out and wait until the next day for a crumb coat and slathering of white frosting.

The question mark seemed like a perfect accent to this cake since I still had no clue if this would work.

And then the giant cut to remove all doubt . . .

It actually worked!!! Hooray!

The first slice left this design. Not all dots showing but they're in there somewhere.

After cutting the second large piece, all but one color magically appeared. Perhaps placing one more ball in the pan would've produced a more even pattern. Next time.

Here's another great surprise about these types of cakes: the colored balls stayed as moist as the rest of the cake even though they were completely baked before hand!!! You'll want to try it yourself just to see but as long as you don't overcook the balls in the first bake, your cake will be moist all the way through. Gotta love science!

You can find a shorter version of the tutorial with the recipes HERE.

Mine is not the first attempt to hide patterns inside cakes. Hidden checkerboard designs have been around for centuries. The very first Battenburg or checkerboard cake was said to have been made in 1884 to celebrate the marriage Queen Victoria's granddaughter, Princess Victoria to Prince Louis of Battenburg.

I can't wait to try more shapes and patterns! The next experiments will be to try smaller balls of different sizes for more of a confetti look. And squares. And . . .

I'll keep ya posted!

Note: This cake design is copyright protected so if you plan to use it for your own tutorial, video or other purpose, you must link back to this blog and give proper credit. No commercial use is allowed.